New Work - Volcano Paintings

Over the last six months, I've been inspired by some explosions... 

Taken from a youtube video

Taken from a youtube video

Volcanoes in all their statuses - Active (Hawaii), Dormant (Mt. Vesuvius) or Extinct (Sunset Crater, Arizona).... and forms Shield (Hawaii again), Stratovolcanoes (Mt. St. Helens), and Caldera (Yellowstone)... and even subglacial volcanoes, submarine volcanoes, hotspots, lava domes... bascially any physical moment where a break in the crust allows for gases, lava, and ash to spew out into a beautiful explosion - has become my muse. 

After reading dozens of books on volcanology, following amazing photographers like Brad Lewis, and watching YouTube videos of exploding volcanoes every night... the series on volcanoes began. 
This series explores the mystery of volcanoes and how these amazing geophysical disasters are essentially our planet's heart beating.

​​I began this series with abstract paintings that captured the vibrant colors associated with volcanic eruptions - reds, blacks, grays, yellows (sulfur), etc... 

Awakening the Dragon

​But I also wanted to capture the explosive feeling Volcanoes have, and still keep the essential beauty of the cataclysmic event. Volcanoes, although destructive, are one of the most beautiful spontaneous natural occurring events on our planet. 

So, I added a little texture to the mix... 

Although the textures, colors, and even the action of the brush strokes made the volcanoes feel "alive," my paintings still weren't "active" enough. I wanted the active volcanoes to pour out lava, and feel like you are there - or at least feel like you are in front of them in some kind of reality where volcanoes are exploding in highly saturated colors. 

So I thought, what about making the paintings on a different colored canvas? Would that make them 'Pop'?

Not really...

​So while discussing my dilemma with a friend of mine, and in the same conversation sharing with her my 3D DNA painting, she inspired me with the idea that what if the volcanoes were 3D? By using science (3D Glasses), I can make my paintings 'explode' -- at least when viewed through the glasses. Unfortunately, there is no way to share this effect on the screen, unless of course someone is reading this with 3D glasses on... 
But that's how Earth's Breathing Lung and Exploding Volcano came to become 3D - adding a little science into more than just the inspiration. And how I got the paintings to finally become 'awake.' At least in a real life experience.

Earth's breathing lung

Exploding Volcano

I'm still working on some volcano paintings in my studio, mostly the landscapes of the extinct and dormant volcanoes. Perhaps though, I always will be working on a volcano painting - continuously inspired by the muse of Pele, or Vulcan -  so this series, like most of my subjects, is still in the works. Though, current and future volcano paintings can be found here.